We Run This State…But We Can’t Even Run I-20

99.9% of UGA fans are elated this evening. We beat our hated rival, the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. Lucky for us, we can send clean-hate-spewed emails to our co-workers (bosses) taunting our greatness on the grid iron. That feels right for about half a second before reality sets in — hold on, this is going to hurt some of my fellow Bulldawg nation’s ego, here it is: we are losers.

My pride in being a UGA graduate consists of two items: first is my degree and second, only inches below my degree, is the football program.

The root of this post lies here.

Yeah, “we run this state,” but what does that matter when we can’t even run I-20? Our recruits in the South are the creme of the crop each year. Our facilities are incredible. Our loyal Bulldawg nation is with the program through thick-n-thin every game and every season.

Little victories today keep us bolstered. They give us hope we can compete on a much larger level. In reality all we did was squeak out a victory against an unranked ACC team.

For as much pride as we (I) put in the program, our discipline is sub-par and our record is atrocious, but….we did beat those nerds. *sips bourbon*

Sure, injuries plagued us this year and a few unlucky plays cost us key victories, but we are not winners.

Like him or not, Saban has set the bar…regardless of their recent loss.

This anecdote on Saban in GQ shows the mind frame and work ethic required to continually compete at the top level in NCAA football:

The story is this: A few days after Alabama beat LSU to win the 2012 national championship, Rumsey and Saban were on the phone together. Most of their conversations take place precisely between 7:12 A.M. and 7:17 A.M., when Saban calls as he drives to work. But this call happened to be in the afternoon. The two men almost never discuss football—Rumsey is the rare Tuscaloosan who doesn’t know or care much about the game, which, he suspects, has something to do with why he and Saban have become friends. But given that his golf buddy had just won the national championship, Rumsey figured he ought to say a few words of congratulations. So he did, telling Saban his team had pulled off an impressive win.

“That damn game cost me a week of recruiting,” Saban grumbled into the phone.

Rumsey at first thought he’d misheard. He asked for clarification. Saban repeated himself. He just knew that while he was preparing for the title game, enduring all the banquets and media bullshit that came with it, some other coach was in the living room of one of his recruits, trying to flip the kid. The thought was making him crazy.

And here we are celebrating a victory against Georgia Tech.

The mentality of the UGA fan and our psdeuo-pride of how “we run shit” is the core cause of our losing program. It keeps Richt in as the coach, it keeps 10-4 seasons good enough, and it maintains a level of happiness to stay right where we are…without a National Championship title in 3 decades.

But, we did beat those nerds. *sips bourbon*

We (the Bulldawg Nation) must address the realities of our program and adjust our standards of excellence. Until then, experience a short-term high by celebrating victories against unranked ACC teams — but I won’t take any part of it. We’ve got a National Championship to win.